


Repair Work

by igrockspock



Category: The Avengers (Marvel Movies)
Genre: F/M, Humor, Post-Captain America: Civil War (Movie), Spoilers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-05-12
Updated: 2016-05-12
Packaged: 2018-06-07 22:35:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 610
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6827959
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/igrockspock/pseuds/igrockspock
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Clint says, “I'm retired. One hundred percent.  Done with Avenging.”</p><p>Laura says, “Will that be for five minutes, or for five days?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	Repair Work

Clint says, “I’m retired. One hundred percent. Done with Avenging.”

Laura doesn’t look up from folding laundry. She says, “Will that be for five minutes, or for five days?”

Clint scratches at the new goatee, the one that makes him look like he’s trying really hard to be Vincent Van Gogh or William Tell or some artsy poet hanging out at the cafe. “Why don’t you believe me?”

Laura rolls her eyes and says, “I want the guttering fixed before the end of your retirement. I mean it. No weird Victorian staircase spindles. No hand-milled table legs. _The guttering._ ”

Clint reaches out to help her fold a sheet. “The guttering. Got it. I’ll start right away.”

***

The retirement lasts four days, twenty-three hours, and fifty-four minutes. Then Clint gets twelve text messages, seven voicemails, some Snapchats, and a desperate-sounding phone call.

He rolls over in bed and says, “So, about that retirement…”

Laura sighs. “I’m not getting my guttering, am I?”

Clint is already gathering up arrows. He’s half-naked, and Laura really thinks he ought to have put on pants first.

“I promise. As soon as I get back,” he says, and kisses her on the cheek.

***

The Vienna airport explodes. Well, not the _whole_ airport. Several parts of it. Some control towers collapse. There might or might not be something about a gigantic man, who may or may not be an ant. Possibly there’s a spiderboy. The situation is confusing at best.

Natasha calls and says, “Laura, don’t freak out.”

Laura’s heart starts racing immediately. “Natasha, you know I always freak out when you say that.”

“Okay, freak out a little bit,” she says. “Clint’s in jail. But I swear, I’m going to get him out.”

“How long is that going to take? And are you going to do it _legally_?” she asks. She’s no legal expert, but she thinks escaping from jail makes you a fugitive. She had not signed up for a wanted man.

“That’s a good question,” Natasha says. “You might have to sit tight for awhile.”

Laura sighs. “Any chance you could come fix my guttering first?”

***

Tony Stark picks up the phone immediately.

She skips the pleasantries and says, “I want new guttering.”

Tony says, “That’s an oddly specific request.”

Laura leans back against the kitchen counter. “I’m watching rain pour through the holes in my guttering -- which my husband was going to fix, before he came out of retirement and went to superhero jail. That’s your fault, right?”

“There’s some blame to go around,” Tony says.

Laura glares. “I’m glaring at you through the phone. Can you feel it? It’s very icy.”

There’s the sound of leather creaking, like Tony’s shifting around in his chair, trying to avoid the laser beams shooting from her eyes. “Are you sure you want guttering? I mean, that’s not very sexy. Could I interest you in some windows that automatically shift opacity according to the angle of the light?”

“I don’t know. Will the fancy windows stop rainwater from pouring into the foundation of my house?” she asks.

Tony sighs. “Touche. Guttering it is.”

***

Laura expected a work crew to show up from the local Home Depot. She did not expect Tony Stark to show up at her door carrying an old red toolbox and several innocuous-looking lengths of guttering.

He says, “Tell me when I get it how you want it.”

Then, after it’s done, he spins a wrench around and around in his hand and says, “Anything else need done?”

Laura shakes her head. “I didn’t expect you to come personally.”

He says, “It’s nice to have a problem I can fix now and again.”


End file.
